1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to cotton harvesters, and, more specifically, to door structure for a cotton harvester row unit.
2. Related Art
Cotton harvesters such as the John Deere 9965 Cotton Picker include transversely spaced row units, each with tandem upright spindle drums supported in a housing on one side of the row of cotton being harvested. A pair of upright doffers remove cotton from the spindles and direct the cotton outwardly and rearwardly to suction door structure which opens rearwardly into an air duct leading to the harvester basket. To provide access to the harvesting mechanism within the housing, a generally planar access door is pivotally connected to the door structure adjacent the rear doffer area and has a forward edge releasably latched near the front doffer area to close the side of the door structure. When the latch is released, the access door may be swung outwardly about the rear pivot so the operator can inspect and access the mechanism from the forward portion of the row unit.
Several problems exist with currently available access doors. The generally planar door is fabricated from metal and can bend relatively easily. Since the door typically latches at the forward end and pivots about a rear hinge, the adjacent row of plants can force open and damage the door as the harvester moves forwardly through the field if the latch should inadvertently be left in the release position or if the door should otherwise come open. Fabricating the door from a lighter weight plastic material heretofore has not been practical because of the relatively large door size and planar construction. Further, access to the door pivot area is limited making visual inspection and field maintenance difficult around the rear drum and rear doffer.
Some cotton growing areas have row spacings that are too narrow to be accommodated by conventional harvesting units. If mechanical harvesting methods are used in these areas, cotton is lost and plants are damaged in adjacent rows. Often, the narrow row cotton is shorter and less dense, but the weight of the cotton makes the branches lean so the lower part of the plant tends to spread out. This spreading of the lower part of the cotton plant increases problems of efficiently harvesting narrow row cotton without adjacent row plant damage and loss of crop.